We are pleased to announce the
first study to report epigenetic modifications throughout the genome in female
ME/CFS patients compared to a matched sample of healthy controls. This research conducted in partnership and
funded by the Solve ME/CFS Initiative (SMCI) was published today in the high
impact and open access journal PLOS ONE (http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0104757).

The Solve ME/CFS Initiative
launched our Research Institute Without Walls in 2010 and Dr. Patrick McGowan
was one of our first grantees to use this innovative infrastructure. Together
with his graduate student, Will de Vega and SMCI’s Scientific Director, Suzanne
D. Vernon, they found evidence of distinct epigenetic profiles in immune and
other physiologically relevant genes in a selected group of female ME/CFS
patients. Will de Vega, who performed much of the work, is a PhD candidate in
the department of Cell and Systems Biology at the University of Toronto. His
thesis research concerns how environmental factors and ME/CFS impact
immunological processes, and their effects on clinically relevant phenotypes.

Epigenetic modifications affect
the way genes are turned on or off without changing the inherited gene
sequences. “Knowledge about the epigenetics of ME/CFS could potentially lead to
alternative treatment options for sufferers, from targeted lifestyle
interventions to new pharmacological treatments”, notes McGowan. There were
many epigenetic modifications in and around immune genes that affect the way
these genes are regulated and expressed. These types of changes would be
expected to affect immune cell function in ME/CFS patients. “This is the first
in a series of exciting results coming from McGowan’s lab at the University of
Toronto”, says Suzanne D. Vernon. “By understanding these epigenetic
differences in the immune cells of ME/CFS patients, we can begin to decipher
the molecular mechanisms of the immune dysfunction that we suspect is at the
root of ME/CFS”.

McGowan started this ME/CFS
epigenetic research in 2012. His quick success is a testament to the power of
patient-centered research approach used by the Solve ME/CFS Initiative. “Our
study would not have been possible without the funding provided by the Solve
ME/CFS Initiative, patient samples from the SolveCFS BioBank, and the
collaborative support of the Initiative’s scientific director Dr. Suzanne D.
Vernon” says McGowan.

The Solve ME/CFS Initiative will
continue to partner with McGowan and his team at the University of Toronto to
further this exciting work of epigenetics and ME/CFS. This field of research
holds promise for identification of diagnostic biomarkers and potential
treatment and interventions for ME/CFS. For right now it is further
demonstration of the indisputable biological basis of ME/CFS.

About Me

I am a Christian, saved by grace alone through faith alone. I have had the neuroimmune disorder ME, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, since 1991. From North Somerset, now in N. Ireland. Please see my website for further information about ME.